Four-on-the-floor places a kick drum on every beat of a 4/4 bar

Four-on-the-floor (or four-to-the-floor) is a drum pattern in 4/4 time where the bass drum hits on all four beats (1, 2, 3, 4) at a steady, uniformly accented tempo. It originated in jazz and became the rhythmic foundation of disco in the 1970s, and subsequently of most electronic dance music. The pattern creates an unambiguous pulse that dancers can lock onto, making it ideal for club contexts. The name comes from the physical action on a drum kit: the kick pedal is on the floor, so four on the floor means four foot-strikes per bar. Many EDM sub-genres use this as a default rhythmic skeleton, with other elements (hi-hats, claps, synths) layered against the constant kick.

Examples

Techno, house, trance, and disco all standardly use four-on-the-floor. In Strudel: s("bd bd bd bd") or equivalently s("bd*4") produces four kicks per bar.

Assessment

Describe in words or notation where the kick drum falls in a four-on-the-floor pattern. Then contrast it with a pattern where the kick only falls on beats 1 and 3.